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February 21, 2006

Talking 'Bout My Generation (of Filmmakers)

I have several stacks of grading to do over the next few days, which means I'm in full procrastination mode this afternoon. For now, I'll just quickly mention that I'm curious to read Joshua Horowitz's new book, Mind of the Modern Moviemaker: Twenty Conversations with the New Generation of Filmmakers, which compiles Horowitz's interviews with filmmakers ranging from DIY hero Kevin Smith to postmodern auteur Michel Gondry and studio faves Brett (Rush Hour) Ratner and Todd (Old School) Phillips.

As far as I can tell, it's a fairly eclectic collection of filmmakers, but the collection also begs a few questions. As far as I can tell, the collection only includes two filmmakers who are women (Karyn Kusama, who directed Aeon Flux and Patty Jenkins, who directed Monster). Because this kind of book functions as a kind of "snapshot" of the film industry, I'd be curious to know what Horowitz's selection process entailed. Karina identifies several implicit arguments in the book, specifically that the filmmakers are a "stamping a generation-specific brand of irony and self-referentiality and digital savvy." Like her, I'm a little skeptical.

Meanwhile, The Reeler offers his take on Horowitz's book and links to his blog, Better Than Fudge, and there's an interview with Horowitz at the Gothamist, where Horowitz describes his book as "something of a time capsule -- a snapshot of contemporary moviemaking today."

Posted by chuck at February 21, 2006 3:53 PM

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